It really does say a lot about how Lucas Paqueta came to be regarded by the West Ham United supporters that, when we asked for your biggest January transfer window regret, the Brazilian’s sale received only five per cent of the vote.
Captain Jarrod Bowen came out to bat for his former teammate following the barrage of criticism which came his way during Lucas Paqueta’s final few weeks at the London Stadium.
The Flamengo returnee, Bowen said, ‘went through hell’ during two years of legal drama. Still, the spot-fixing charge which threatened to destroy his career and scuppered an £80 million move to Manchester City was no real excuse for a ridiculous red card against Liverpool, or an maddening tendency to play his teammates into trouble with silly giveaways and foolish flicks.
A mixed transfer window for the Hammers! ⚒️
But what is your biggest January regret? What would you change if you could?
Paqueta was occasionally a great player for West Ham United, yes. But he wasn’t always a great teammate, particularly towards the end.
Nuno Espirito Santo feels West Ham will miss Paqueta’s ‘unique’ qualities in the final third. But after winning three of four matches without him – scoring nine goals in the process against QPR, Tottenham, Sunderland and Chelsea – life without Lucas has started fairly well.
We at Hammers News asked our readers to pick their greatest winter window regret following Monday’s 7pm deadline. In perhaps a classic case of ‘recency bias’, only five per cent of you voted for Paqueta’s departure.
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The sudden exits of academy duo Emeka Adiele and Elisha Sowunmi – to FC Utrecht and Tottenham Hotspur – picked up three times as many votes. And, although Axel Disasi could make his West Ham debut against Burnley on Saturday, a staggering 73 per cent were left wishing that Charlie Cresswell had ended the window in claret and blue.
But as Nuno explains what you want and what you get in January are often two very different things.
Nuno Espirito Santo happy with West Ham United squad despite not signing Charlie Cresswell
Toulouse never had any real intention of cashing in on their much-coveted England Under-21 international. Wolfsburg and Brighton saw £20 million-plus bids rejected.
What’s more, there were no noises out of Cresswell’s camp suggesting that he was going to slap down a transfer request and demand a move.
As French football expert Jonathan Johnson told the On the Continent podcast, Cresswell could force his way into England’s World Cup squad if he continues to play with such consistency and quality across the Channel.
Photo by LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP via Getty Images
Nuno did not speak about Cresswell directly or even mention him by name during his press conference on Thursday lunchtime.
But those accusing the club or the board of a lack of ambition would do well to remember that clubs seldom walk away from the January transfer window having successfully landed their number one target. And, even if they do, history suggests they would have had to pay well over the odds.
“We brought players that we [felt] made sense, in terms of rebalancing the squad. The players that came in, we think they can help,” says Nuno, who signed Taty Castellanos, Pablo Felipe, Adama Traore and Keiber Lamadrid, as well as Disasi.
“Of course, there were other things going on [with other targets], but it is a very tricky window. We have a committed squad now, and we have to move forward. Of course, it is not always perfect, but the main reason is I think we have been able to rebalance the squad and become competitive.”
“I am totally convinced that we are going to be OK. This is what I can tell our fans; that we are working, we are committed, we are aware of the situation and the responsibility on us.
“Definitely, we rebalanced the squad. We have options and the players are committed. More than anything, that is important.
“The situation with Lucas is that everybody is aware it was something difficult to do. In the end, everybody looked for the better solution. But I insist on that; you have to realise you can have targets, but those targets are at other clubs.
“It is not only what you want, but what the other clubs do. Our fans must understand, the transfer window of January is very difficult to operate.”
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Chelsea loanee Axel Disasi could make Hammers debut at Burnley
Preston-born former Leeds prospect Cresswell was the dream target of many West Ham fans. Hammers News can also confirm he was the centre-back right at the top of the club’s January wishlist, too.
Amid all the clamour around the £30 million-rated giant, though, it is easy to forget that Cresswell was not the ‘sure thing’ many had proclaimed him to be.
He played only 140 minutes of Premier League football for Leeds.
There is no guarantee of success with Axel Disasi, of course. As Chelsea legend Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink put it on Sky Sports, Disasi’s fitness will be a concern having not played a top-flight game in nine months.
Yet, instead of Cresswell, West Ham have landed themselves a centre-back with plenty of experience on the biggest stages and against the best opposition. He won the Conference League with Chelsea, was a regular for Monaco, and has played in a World Cup final with France.
Disasi has dominated Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, too, on some of his finest afternoons. Should they land that version, rather than the one who fell out of favour at Stamford Bridge, we could one day be speaking about Disasi in the same breath as Carlos Tevez; inspired signings whose presence ignited a ‘Great Escape’.
Southampton rejected a West Ham bid for Taylor Harwood-Bellis as well, heading into deadline day. The Hammers tried to sign Natan from Real Betis, also, for somewhere in the region of £30 million.
All in all, Disasi surely ranks as the most experienced, most ‘proven’ defensive addition that West Ham could realistically have hoped for.
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